Well there will people who think I'm funny, but there will be people who say, "I was on meds and you helped me," or "I understand what you're going through with your sister." We broke that wall down so we could explore the process. So I love e-mails from people who have the same problems I've had, from having a manic episode to having family and friends come down on them. All that stuff. That makes me feel good and makes me feel like the show is worthwhile. And I want it to be funny.
Some people actually sit with me and that sometimes drives me crazy, when I'm at a dinner, but no one seems to realize when I'm in a booth having dinner, and then they just sit down and start talking, and I go "ooh." But I can't even almost get myself to say anything mean, because they all mean well, it's the worst thing, and if they're drunk, drunks are tough to deal with, because they're your #1 fan until you finally ask them to leave. Then not only do they hate you but they want to beat you up. So when they come up and they are tentative, and say "can I get a picture or autograph" and you say "yes," they are reading you, they are getting feedback, and you say "yes," and then they say "Can...
i'm still not really used to it, so I by accident will scream or gasp a lot when people call my name or touch me on the street. yesterday on the way home, a couple touched my shoulder to get my attention to tell me they were fans, and i yelled out "aaah!" and the woman dropped her coffee. i scared the shit out of them.
i think what's weird is that i don't think it's weird! i just did WTF with Maron today (a short talk) and was like I KNOW YOU BETTER THAN YOU KNOW! so i get it. i like that with fans we can cut to the good stuff, the personal stuff and just laugh.
as far as fans on the street. Well, that got kind of difficult this year because it became frequent. it's tricky because I find myself in the strange and indefensible position of being really uncomfortable due to something I am very grateful for. I appreciate every person that approaches me to say something. So I kind of invested some brain and heart space and time into puzzling out how do I deal with this? I lived some moments that i didn't like how I reacted to someone being nice. I can't expect anyone to know why it can be stressful. You sort of wan tto be lost in your own gaze and haze of your life and not be noticed constantly by folks and treated strangely and then stared at. But you s...
It's best to say "How would I like to be approached by someone?" If you're eating dinner with a gf/bf or in the middle of something, it can be awkward to get interrupted. But if your standing alone in a bookstore or waiting in line for a coffee, totally fine. Pics can be weird bc if people see you do one, then they all ask for them. Sometimes the weirdos ruin it for the others.
People do ask you to tell jokes when you are a comedian. They are either dumb or hostile. Or dumb and hostile. I usually just assume they mean well but are dumb. But when you tell them a joke they don't laugh which is infuriating.
Sometimes when I'm out, like in Las Vegas, this is a funny story that no one is asking, but it reminded me that I have such a sort of reputation that these girls come up and flirt, and they can't believe I don't flirt back, I had twice in one weekend these ladies come up to me and say that they're married but I was their "freebie." And I go "oh, that's so nice" and they're all like "no… but you're my freebie. Like there's no strings." and I'm like "great" and they're like "wait, you don't get it do you" and I say "Yes, I get it. I just don't want it." I think I have a vote in this too! And they're so hurt, mostly angry, they think that I'm going to grab anything in site from watching Grown U...
People say to me "I'm so-and-so and you're not!" as opposed to me saying "I'm Chevy Chase and you're not" but that was from SNL...
And they also liked "NANANANANANANANA!"
which is out of CADDYSHACK.
Um, Sarah Michelle Gellar and myself are credited in ROBOT CHICKEN many, many times for doing things that do not exist. Seth is our best friend, and we made him do it.
It gets difficult sometimes! Lines get blurred and one sometimes has to remember, oh, we're all strangers and there are subtleties and nuances of expression that are lost in typing. Overall, though, I think it's good.
I think there's something about comedians that is different than actors or writers. Since with stand-up there is no fourth wall, it's not like you're watching a play where you're watching in on this reality; there is an approachable side to comedians, and comedians are talking to the audience. Therefore, they're talking to people, so people feel like there is an accessibility there.
That being said, yeah there's been plenty of weird and peculiar things. There's probably not a day that doesn't pass where someone doesn't come up to me and say, "Hot pockets!" thinking that that will be the highlight of my day, or that maybe they're the first person to do it. But it doesn't really bother me. The...
Q: I just want to let you know, to the right crowd, Your Highness was an absolute success. Also, for some time, I used "I can feel it down in my plums" as a ringtone.
A: Thank you, thank you. The right crowd is the only crowd I care about. The rest can suck it. Suck them plums. Thanks for watching.
I think it's that Community and Rick and Morty don't punish obsession. I remember Megan Ganz coming to work on Community and she seemed kind of bummed out and told us that her therapist, having listened to all of her frustrations about working on Community, finally said, "but isn't it just a show?" And the reason Ganz was bummed out by that was because she knew right then and there that she now had to go and find another therapist. Nobody that worked on Community or that works on Rick and Morty has the capacity to regard the show as unimportant - people that feel that way quit - and I think you can feel through the screen that if you were to approach someone working on Rick and Morty with a ...
I don't know- I have an extremely limited perspective- I am a white, older, well-off (now) lady and I try to wake up, but I know there is no way I am not going to make mistakes as a result of my cultural ignorance. If someone is hurt by something, they are hurt and I think, it needs to be addressed- that it's an important part of being a human being- to acknowledge the experience of others. People can then agree to disagree, but to say someone's wrong or too sensitive for not liking something also is irresponsible.
I did the Edinburgh festival years ago. I did a joke about being a germaphobe. After the show a woman approached me and handed me a stack of high-end moist towelettes, the kind that come in scents like Eucalyptus and spearmint, and sell at Whole Foods for $15. I thanked her and made a "joke" about her sending me a case. She sent me 20 bags!
Everybody's really nice to me. And there's been so many times when a stranger has suddenly said "holy shit it's Dan Harmon" or "by the way I didn't want to freak you out earlier but I'm a big fan of your work" that I now get to assume, just as a mental exercise, that at least one person in any room I enter is a fan, which makes me feel confident and also puts me on my best behavior because this theoretical "fan" is watching and I don't want them to think I'm a bad person. So on one hand, achieving notoriety is definitely surreal in that it's nothing like reality, but on the other hand, all it really does is make reality the way reality should be for every single individual. And I've been kin...
I'll let it all sort itself out... If I was a fan of mine, I'd hope that I would continue to offer work that surprises you, regardless of genre classification.
Brody Stevens